Deaths spike as Denmark battles 'triple epidemic'

COPENHAGEN, Denmark

Around 1,400 people died in Denmark during the last week of 2022, at least 30% higher than estimates, according to the country’s infectious diseases agency.

The State Serum Institute (SSI) said the ongoing “triple epidemic” – flu, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and COVID-19 – was possibly the biggest factor, having particularly impacted Denmark’s elderly population.

“It’s a steeper curve than we usually see, and it surprises us a little bit. We usually see a higher mortality in the winter months, but the figures show that right now there is higher mortality than there usually is at this time of year,” Lasse Vestergaard of the SSI said in a statement on Thursday.

While December’s last week also saw more hospitalizations for flu, the increase was not as high as previous weeks, the SSI reported, but warned that flu cases are likely to increase in the coming weeks.

At the same time, there was a decline in RSV cases and hospitalizations, but the “level is still high compared to the seasons that preceded COVID-19,” the health agency said.

From 157 in the previous week, the number of COVID-19 infections decreased to 115 per 100,000 people, with a drop recorded in all regions and age groups, except infants, according to the SSI.​​​​​​​